


Snailmate

by Box15



Series: The Snailmate AU [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair, But don't quote me on that, Gen, HPA AU, Hope's Peak Academy AU, I believe these are called, but he's always a good boy anyway so there's not much difference, in which Kiibo has a snail and is a good boy, no spoilers!!!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-30
Updated: 2017-09-30
Packaged: 2019-01-07 09:37:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12230262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Box15/pseuds/Box15
Summary: Ouma has a fear of critters. Kiibo has a pet Snail. Together, they both move a step forward to being closer to one another.





	Snailmate

**Author's Note:**

> Wanted to take a quick step back and just write something nice for once. No killing game, no romance and definitely no spoilers. Something a little refreshing before we all jump back into the despair. Largely based on headcanons, but hopefully the delivery should make it enjoyable to y’all too!
> 
> With thanks to Forrest and shinguujimutual(.tumblr.com) for your support with the concept and process of this! This fic never would have come to be without your enthusiasm for the idea and all the headcanons that make it up!! And as always, a huuuuge thank you to please_give_me_that_pen_back for proofreading and continued support, you’re super swell! ^0^

Kaito owns a Corgi. Saihara, a Russian Blue. Kiibo, however, was a little different. Kiibo owns a Giant African Land Snail, affectionately named Sponge. 

It had all started when he was but a young AI, discovering the molluscs during one of his first trips outside. At that time he was brash and unknowingly insensitive with his actions, scaring off other critters. That, or he was scared off by them. But Snails were slow moving and unthreatening, so he would watch them with wide eyes. Ever since, he’s been fascinated. Feeding, playing with, and providing shelter for the garden visitors became one of his favourite activities. 

Time passed and Kiibo’s AI started to develop, gradually becoming less dependant on his ‘dad’, Idabashi. He still needed a lot of help, but he was mature enough to left on his own for a short period of time without suffering an accident. That being said, he was never left on his own for more than an hour or two, except to rest. Idabashi used these hours to work on reports based on Kiibo and related findings, relaying back to his team and scientists across the world. Kiibo was both fascinated and embarrassed that his dad would spend so much time writing about him, let alone share it with anyone else! 

Though his home office isn’t exactly cut off from the rest of the bungalow, Idabashi knows these work hours can be lonely for Kiibo. Which is why he decided to invest in a pet. Reading that Snails are quite low maintenance and often owned by children, he thought that it would be a safe choice. Surely there couldn’t be many ways Kiibo and a Snail could cause injury or damage to anything, or themselves? With the professor just a room or two away, there couldn’t be a safer pet for the robot to own. 

So at just 2 and a half years old, Kiibo came to own his first pet. There was a lot to like about Sponge- They have a hard shell, just like he does! Being a hermaphrodite, Sponge is both a boy and a girl, whilst Kiibo is neither. Having a friend who is also a little different makes him feel more human! And the trail they leave behind isn’t unlike the charging cable he often traipses around the house. It’s on accident. Honestly. 

Present day, Kiibo is a student of Hope’s Peak at a staggering 4 years old. Nurseries and primary schools just weren’t equipped to help him. Entered as the SHSL Robot, he leads a slightly different life to his fellow students. Not really knowing anything about how he works, he’s dependant on technology based students and their talents to help explore his own. But with how loose their timetable is, they are often busy, or don’t bother to show up at all. During this time, he instead attends ‘normal’ classes. Idabashi is a scientist, engineer and a father, among other things. But he isn’t a teacher, let alone a qualified one. Coupled with the fact that he has 10 or so years less of life experience than everyone else, he has a lot of learning to do! 

Mostly, he attends the maths, languages, home economics and personal/social education classes. Sometimes peers will teach him the basics in their subjects, netting him a wide range of experiences. Often, he’ll see a girl from another year turn up to his language classes, claiming to be a Princess from another country. She had to explain what a Princess was. Ouma turns up only to classes that teach him about life skills or the home. 

Due to the nature of his talent, he couldn’t take the same type of exam everyone else could. It’d be hard for him to show off how he’d been developing his talent if he was the talent itself. Instead, these classes contributed to an ongoing exam, exploring how his AI develops. Accompanied by an LSA and making use of a lift pass, he enjoys the school experience a lot. 

Having befriended an Entomologist, he and Sponge are also better friends than ever. Using his classmate’s advice, he’s changed around how he cares for the Snail. The changes also make Sponge more comfortable around Kiibo, it being now happy to travel up and down Kiibo’s arms. Currently he’s negotiating with Idabashi for some snail-friends for Sponge, for whilst he’s at school. Flannel and Bathmat would make good friend names, he thinks. 

But he can’t be pondering that now, today is a special day! Going to school meant he had made friends, one of which had invited himself over. Ouma was just curious to see how a robot would live. Kiibo doesn’t mind at all, ecstatic to have a friend come round. What he doesn’t realise is that the two live in an ordinary three bedroomed bungalow. The third bedroom was converted into a home office, and was what Idabashi liked to call ‘organised chaos’. Whilst the professor has plenty of money, it’s only the two of them and Sponge in the house. So there’s no need for anything bigger. Besides, Idabashi had his own, separate lab and assistants for when he did practical work. 

Still, Ouma was late. Incredibly late. The house was cleaned early this morning, the professor retreating into the office to give them space. With nothing else constructive to do, Kiibo starts to clean out Sponge’s tank. It has to be done once a week, but it’s a fairly quick job with how efficient Kiibo has become at it. Not too terribly interesting, but it helps to pass the time whilst he waits. If he decides to show at all, that is. 

Speak of the devil, Ouma then shows up, a whole two hours late. Luckily, Kiibo is now almost done, just clearing up. Ouma’s explanation is that his family don’t have a car, and he certainly doesn’t have any money for public transport. His friend’s super secret shortcuts can only help him so much! Kiibo doesn’t argue with that. He knows Ouma is poor, despite how he tries to hide it.

In fact, there are only two things in life that Ouma doesn’t try to hide. The first is that he’s blind in his right eye, using the white/grey iris to freak out those who he didn’t like. Causing general havoc for the squeamish was something he got called out on at least once a day. It didn’t really bother Kiibo, mind, considering his own eyes weren’t even real. The second of which was his distaste for bugs, insects and… land based molluscs. Never would he admit it, but it was more of a fear than a hatred. Hatred sounded cooler. 

Ouma had been enjoying snooting around the small home, greeting the professor and investigating Kiibo’s possessions. He sure did own a lot of Pogs. Wait… was that a Mortal Kombat one? And did that one have a Rapidash on it? How was a cutting edge robot into such retro things? Whatever. Smiling to himself, he enters the living room. But his palms became sweaty as he does. Sponge is inside a travel tank, climbing up the sides and towards the exit on the lid. Suddenly, he feels very vulnerable. 

Sensing discomfort, Kiibo gets back to clearing up right away. All he asks is that Ouma keeps an eye on Sponge, making sure they don’t fall down from the sides. Scooting around the tank, he picks the chair furthest from it. He’s not going near that… thing! Unnerved by their presence, he flicks back and forth between watching Sponge and Kiibo. The vivarium is a long one, the size of which could probably house a Snake or two, not just one Snail. Kiibo had put in several centimetres of peat, with plant pots turned over inside it to create hidey holes. Branches, plants and bath decorated the tank, a thermometer stuck to the side. Kiibo was placing food and what looked to be a bone on a freshly washed dish. There seemed an endless list of stuff to be done, leaving Ouma to to wonder why a pet Snail received better care than he did. 

Spraying a fine mist of water around the tank, soon all that was left to do was to put Sponge back into their home. Being outside around an unfamiliar guest must be stressful, Kiibo thought. He’d rather be at home hiding too in that situation. But, Ouma was his friend. He wanted Ouma to come over again, and to feel comfortable doing so. Maybe the two should get to know each other?

“Ouma, did you want to-”

“Nope! Don’t even ask!” 

That was okay, too. If Ouma were to freak out whilst handling Sponge, he could accidentally cause damage to them! There had to be something he could do…

Removing the lid from the travel tank, Kiibo slowly turns it over so that Sponge is the right way up again. Spraying his own hands with water, he then gently lifts Sponge up, placing them on his hand. Cupping both hands together, he moves them a little closer to Ouma, who shifts away in return. 

“Maybe you could try stroking the shell?” He asks softly.

Raising an eyebrow, Ouma shoots him a disapproving look, as if to say “Really?” Obviously, he wasn’t impressed at the idea. Kiibo couldn’t blame him. 

“I just want you to feel happy being in my home. I know critters aren’t our idea of a good friend, but I promise you that Sponge is different. I wouldn’t own them if they were threatening! Besides, Idabashi wouldn’t allow me to have anything dangerous to human or robot. There’s nothing to worry about.”

Averting his gaze, Ouma cast his eyes down and groaned. 

“There’s no harm in saying no. I wouldn’t force you to do anything you don’t want to. I just want to be sure, that’s all.” 

“There’s no harm in trying, either.” He knew Kiibo was just trying to be supportive, but there was something about his tone of voice Ouma didn’t quite like. Ah, that was it. Condescending adults trying to console him about his less than pleasant home life. Yet, in a strange way, it gave him the confidence boost he needed to at least try. Proving people wrong was something he took pride in excelling at, after all. So he wasn’t angry, or even upset. In fact, he was more surprised at himself for even considering it. 

He looked Sponge in the eyes, taking a deep breath. Hesitantly, he lifted his shaking hands, unable to still them even for a second. Sponge was still sat on Kiibo’s right hand, so he used the left to steady Ouma’s arm, trying to comfort him. 

Together, Ouma placed a few fingers onto the left swirling shell. For a moment, he didn’t move, his heart racing hard in his chest. Eventually, his fingers moved slightly, getting used to the feeling of the smooth shell until Kiibo felt satisfied enough to let go, allowing Ouma to pet the shell on his own. The polished surface was pleasant to touch, and oddly satisfying to stroke. Beautifully detailed and fragile, yet strong enough to save a life, Ouma was starting to see what Kiibo did in this Snail. A small smile crept up on both of their faces as he gained confidence, before pulling away with a happy hum. 

“I… I actually did it, huh.” 

His voice was quiet, but happy nonetheless, his heart elated but BPM returning to normal. Sponge was then returned to their home, and Ouma was given a quick hug. Though it was only a small bit of progress, Kiibo was honestly proud of what was achieved today. Hopefully one day Ouma would be able to hold Sponge, even if he never was comfortable with bugs or insects. For now, at least, he would be able to feel okay coming over again. And at that, Kiibo couldn’t be happier. 

Ouma practically skips into to Kiibo’s kitchen, excitedly chatting about how weird the experience was as the two washed their hands from Sponge. Kitchen… Kitchen… It reminded of something he had to do, but he couldn’t place what. 

Ah! Of course! He hadn’t even offered Ouma something to drink yet! Helping to start overcoming fears is one thing, good hosting skills were obviously another. Making a mental note to ask Tojo about how she remembers to do this, he pulls some grape flavoured sweets out of a cupboard. With Ouma happier, it was now time to take hanging out to the next level and relax to the full. His guest deserved it, and Kiibo was going to do his best for him. Perhaps Ouma could educate him on some good movies?

**Author's Note:**

> Whilst not the most hardcore or exciting fic in the world, I think something irrelevant and relaxing is needed every now and then. Thank you for reaching the end!


End file.
